The present invention is directed, in general, to the recording of a video program in a video recorder and, more specifically, to a system and method for determining whether a video program has been previously recorded by a video recorder.
A wide variety of video recorders are available in the marketplace. Most people own, or are familiar with, a video cassette recorder (VCR). A video cassette recorder records video programs on magnetic cassette tapes. More recently, video recorders that use computer magnetic hard disks rather than magnetic cassette tapes to store video programs have appeared in the market. For example, the ReplayTV(trademark) recorder and the TiVO(trademark) recorder digitally record television programs on hard disk drives using, for example, an MPEG video compression standard. Additionally, some video recorders may record on a readable/writable, digital versatile disk (DVD) rather than a magnetic disk.
Video recorders are typically used in conjunction with a video display device such as a television. A video recorder may be used to record a video program at the same time that the video program is being displayed on the video display device. A common example is the use of a video cassette recorder (VCR) to record television programs while the television programs are simultaneously displayed on a television screen.
A video recorder may also be used to record a video program even though the video program is not being displayed on the video display device. A common example is the use of a video cassette recorder (VCR) to automatically record television programs while the viewer is not present.
When a viewer wishes to record a video program the viewer gives instructions to (or xe2x80x9cprogramsxe2x80x9d) the video recorder to record the video program. The viewer gives the video recorder information concerning the date, the time, and the channel information of the desired program. Alternatively, the video recorder automatically selects a video program based upon information from the program profile in the viewer""s personal viewing history. When the video recorder determines that a desired program (or an automatically selected program) is being received, the video recorder records the program.
In many instances, however, a video program may be shown more than once. For example, it is not uncommon for a video program to be shown in a particular time slot and then be shown again on the same channel in a different time slot later the same day (or on another day). When a desired video program is shown more than once, the video recorder also records the additional showings of the desired video program. This occurs even though the video recorder has previously recorded an identical version of the desired video program.
Some video recorders (e.g., the TiVO(trademark) recorder) are capable of using Electronics Program Guide (EPG) information to determine the identity of the video programs. Whenever the video recorder detects a second video program that has the same EPG information as a previously recorded first video program, the video recorder will not record the second video program.
This method does not always produce a desired result. EPG information may often be unavailable or inaccurate, especially in the case of live television broadcasts. In addition, it is known that instances have occurred in which the first and second parts of a xe2x80x9cpilotxe2x80x9d program were assigned the same EPG information. A video recorder using EPG information recorded the first part of the xe2x80x9cpilotxe2x80x9d program but did not record the second part of the xe2x80x9cpilotxe2x80x9d program because the two parts had identical EPG information.
There is therefore a need in the art for an improved system and method in a video recorder for identifying a repeated transmission of a video program that has already been recorded. That is, there is a need in the art for an improved system and method in a video recorder for recognizing that a video program that is presently being received is identical to a video program that has already been recorded by the video recorder.
There is also a need in the art for an improved system and method in a video recorder for ceasing to record an additional version of a video program that has already been recorded. There is also a need in the art for an improved system and method in a video recorder for resetting a video recorder to discard any recorded portion of an additional version of a video program that has already been recorded.
To address the above-discussed deficiencies of the prior art, it is a primary object of the present invention to provide, for use in a video recorder utilizing recording tape, hard disk, solid state memory, or other types of recording devices, a system and method for identifying a repeated transmission of a video program that has already been recorded in a video recorder. In other words, it is a primary object of the present invention to provide a system and method for determining whether a video program has been previously recorded in a video recorder.
The present invention comprises a transcript processor that is capable of obtaining a transcript of an incoming video program by assembling the transcript from closed caption text of the video program, or from text from a speech to text converter, or from text from a third party source, or from extracted video text, or from embedded screen text. The transcript processor compares the transcript of the incoming video program with transcripts of video programs that have been previously recorded by the video recorder in order to determine whether the incoming video program has been previously recorded by the video recorder. The incoming video program is not recorded a second time if it has been previously recorded.
According to an advantageous embodiment of the present invention, the transcript processor is capable of assembling a transcript from a source of text (e.g., from closed caption text) of a video program by executing computer software instructions in a video recorder controller.
According to an advantageous embodiment of the present invention, the video recorder controller is capable of sequentially assembling a transcript of a video program from individual closed caption text portions of a video program.
According to another advantageous embodiment of the present invention, the video recorder controller is capable of excluding the text of commercial messages from the transcript of a video program.
According to yet another embodiment of the present invention, the video recorder controller is capable of comparing a transcript of a video program with transcripts of video programs that have previously been recorded by the video recorder.
According to still another embodiment of the present invention, the transcript processor is capable of stopping the process of recording a video program when the transcript processor determines that a video program has previously been recorded by the video recorder.
The foregoing has outlined rather broadly the features and technical advantages of the present invention so that those skilled in the art may better understand the detailed description of the invention that follows. Additional features and advantages of the invention will be described hereinafter that form the subject of the claims of the invention. Those skilled in the art should appreciate that they may readily use the conception and the specific embodiment disclosed as a basis for modifying or designing other structures for carrying out the same purposes of the present invention. Those skilled in the art should also realize that such equivalent constructions do not depart from the spirit and scope of the invention in its broadest form.
Before undertaking the DETAILED DESCRIPTION, it may be advantageous to set forth definitions of certain words and phrases used throughout this patent document: the terms xe2x80x9cincludexe2x80x9d and xe2x80x9ccomprise,xe2x80x9d as well as derivatives thereof, mean inclusion without limitation; the term xe2x80x9cor,xe2x80x9d is inclusive, meaning and/or; the phrases xe2x80x9cassociated withxe2x80x9d and xe2x80x9cassociated therewith,xe2x80x9d as well as derivatives thereof, may mean to include, be included within, interconnect with, contain, be contained within, connect to or with, couple to or with, be communicable with, cooperate with, interleave, juxtapose, be proximate to, be bound to or with, have, have a property of, or the like; and the term xe2x80x9ccontrollerxe2x80x9d means any device, system or part thereof that controls at least one operation, such a device may be implemented in hardware, firmware or software, or some combination of at least two of the same. It should be noted that the functionality associated with any particular controller may be centralized or distributed, whether locally or remotely. In particular, a controller may comprise one or more data processors, and associated input/output devices and memory, that execute one or more application programs and/or an operating system program. Definitions for certain words and phrases are provided throughout this patent document, those of ordinary skill in the art should understand that in many, if not most instances, such definitions apply to prior, as well as future uses of such defined words and phrases.